I have 4 cats. I have a magnetic cat door & all 4 cats wear a magnet on their collar to get in & out. No other cat can get in.

Just recently, 4 months or so, one of the cats has been spraying AND peeing in the house. I discovered a "lake" of pee under the dryer in the laundry room - looked like days worth! And I've smelled pee in another 2 rooms, so that must be the spraying. The bath mat has been peed on a couple of times as well; I keep that off the floor now.

I don't know which cat it is.

Nothing has changed for any of them to become stressed. What can I do? A litter box in every room? CCTV to find out who it is?

Cat owners sometimes confuse urine spraying with urinating, even though the behaviors are quite different. Urine spraying is a normal, innate territory-marking behavior that has nothing to do with your cat's sanitation. Though both male and female cats will spray, the behavior is most common in non-neutered males, and in multi-cat households. The spraying of urine on drapes, furniture, and other surfaces is your cat's way of identifying territory or covering the scent of other cats. While this behavior is normal, it can and should be prevented to keep your home odor free.

Do not confuse urine spraying with eliminating outside of the litter box. If your cat urinates outside of her litter box, leaving a puddle or a large carpet stain, you should call your veterinarian immediately. She/he they may have a urinary tract infection, cystitis that needs to be treated as soon as possible. Some need anti anxiey meds like buspirone. Or, as mentioned above, she may be marking territory by spraying.

Have your cat examined by a veterinarian for any physical problems. Be sure to mention your cat's urination and defecation habits. If a cat's elimination is painful because of a Urinary Tract Infection, the cat may associate the litterbox with pain and choose to eliminate elsewhere. When your cat is healthy again, a careful reintroduction to the box will be necessary. Carefully check the 10 steps for preventing litterbox problems. Are you following all of them? Perhaps the solution is as easy as adding more litterboxes, cleaning more frequently, or changing the brand of litter. Try to accommodate your cat's preferences for location and litter material, if possible. Never punish your cat for eliminating outside of the litterbox. Housesoiling occurs when the litterbox, its contents, or its location is offensive to the cat, or when the cat is stressed by the environment. Punishment only increases a cat's stress. Housesoiling is never done to spite the guardian. If aversion to the litterbox is ruled out, the problem could be anxiety- related. Has there been a change in the household? Any intrusion of your cat's territory, whether human, animal or even a new piece of furniture, can cause a cat to feel threatened, insecure or stressed. This results in his need to remind himself and the world of his territory. Territorial marking is usually accomplished by spraying urine on vertical surfaces, or less frequently, by squatting and urinating or defecating on horizontal surfaces. The more cats in the household, the more likely it is that one or more of them will spray. Try to relieve or eliminate the source of your cat's anxiety. (For example, pull the drapes so that she can't see the antics of a cat roaming outside the window.) If the environmental cause that triggers the territorial behavior cannot be identified or eliminated, consult with an experienced feline behaviorist.

Whatever the cause for the inappropriate elimination, a brief confinement period may be necessary in order to clean the soiled areas, place deterrents in these spots and purchase more litterboxes or new litter. The confinement room should be a comfortable room and should contain two litterboxes, fresh food, water, a bed and toys. (Remember not to place the litterboxes near the food and water.)

Visit your cat regularly, but don't let him out until the home environment has been cleaned and the litterbox situation has been improved. (Please note that extended periods of confinement may be detrimental to the re-training process, so move quickly to make these changes.) When your cat is given full house privileges, it is important to praise the appropriate behavior.

In order to thoroughly clean the urine-soaked areas, a black light may be needed to identify the problem spots and a strong enzymatic cleaner should be used to saturate and neutralize them.

What is the best way to prevent litterbox problems you ask, well:

1. Have your cat spayed or neutered by six months of age. Sexually mature, intact cats frequently use urine and feces to mark their territory. Neutering will correct the elimination problems in 90% of these cats.

2. The rule of thumb for the number of litterboxes is: one per cat in the household, plus one. Extra litterboxes are necessary because some cats like to defecate in one and urinate in another. Others will not use a box that has already been used by another cat. Different areas for the litterboxes can prevent location-avoidance problems.

3. Clean the litterboxes DAILY. The single most common reason for a cat's refusal to use a litterbox is because the box is dirty. Non-clumping litter should be scooped daily and the litterbox emptied and washed every other day. Clumping litter should also be scooped daily and the litterbox washed when soiled. The cheaper clumping litters that break-up easily should be dumped out as frequently as the non-clumping litters. (Bacteria left in the litterbox will smell to the cat even if you can't smell it.)

4. Choose a litter that appeals to the cat. Most cats prefer the texture of the sand-like scooping litters. Be sure to select a brand that clumps into a firm ball, making scooping easier and cleaner. As a health precaution for kittens that might be prone to ingest the litter, use a non-clumping litter until the kitten is four months old.

5. NEVER use scented litter. Perfumed, chemical scents repel cats. When you wash the litterbox, use hot water and a mild dishwashing liquid. Do not use harsh chemicals that will leave a lingering odor.

6. Do not use litterbox liners--they can be irritating to some cats. Covered or hooded litterboxes can be offensive to cats as they do not satisfy the cat's need for escape potential when eliminating. They also trap the odor inside, creating an "outhouse effect". The litterbox should be uncovered and at least 22" x 16" for an adult cat.

7. Place litterboxes in quiet, private places that are easily accessible to the cat and where it will not be disturbed by children or ambushed by other pets. Noisy areas near washing machines, furnaces, or under stairs, may frighten the cat away from the box. A house with several stories should have a litterbox on each floor. NEVER place litterboxes near food and water dishes.

8. While kittens have an innate predisposition to use an easily raked substrate as their litter, they may also choose other, more convenient, locations. You should limit their territory until they learn that the litterbox is the only acceptable place to eliminate. Praise and rewards will speed up the learning process. Like small children, they should not be expected to travel very far to find their toilet areas.

9. When introducing a new cat into the home, confine the cat to one room with its litterbox, bed, food and water, until the cat has used the litterbox several times and shows an interest in exploring the rest of the house. Once you have decided on the placement for the litterboxes in your house -- don't move them!

10. Help your cat feel comfortable in his home territory. Play games with him, give him a massage, talk to him frequently. Give him positive and affectionate attention. A confident, secure, contented and relaxed cat does not need to relieve anxiety and stress by such extreme measures as urine or fecal marking.

just a question: i used softwood wood stove pellets, such as pine. it worked beautifully and did not smell for several days. the cats preferred it, too, so i'd scoop out the serious business daily and then toss the rest every 3-4 days [can't remember exactly how many].